Why are online jewelry sales so high?

Officially, it appears that online jewelry revenues were about $4.8 billion or 7.4 percent of total jewelry industry sales in 2007. Preliminary jewelry sales in the U.S. market in 2007 were $64.8 billion.

Total Retail Online Sales for 2007 :

The U.S. Department of Commerce has reported that total online commerce was about $136.4 billion in 2007, up 19.0 percent from the prior year. As a percentage of total retail sales, e-commerce sales in 2007 were 3.4 percent, up from 2.9 percent in the prior year.
The graph below compares online retail penetration for all retail categories versus online penetration for jewelry sales.

Why are online jewelry sales, as a percentage of total industry sales, so high in comparison to the average for all retail categories? Currently, most online jewelry sales represent diamond jewelry. A recent study by ad agency JWT suggests that roughly 80 percent of all online jewelry sales are diamonds and diamond jewelry. Because diamond jewelry carries a much higher average ticket than other jewelry categories, the bias in sales towards diamonds is pushing up the reported online sales penetration. Further, consumers are increasingly buying from online jewelers because they offer the same goods at a much better price than most store-based jewelers.

Source: IDEX & U.S. Dept. of Commerce

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My Life Is Beautiful

Another Record-Breaking Auction for a Diamond Today

A Sotheby's employee holds the largest brilliant-cut D-color flawless diamond during a preview at Sotheby's in Geneva, Switzerland.

An 84.37-carat white diamond touted by Sotheby's for its unprecedented size and beauty could beat the record today, Wednesday, for the most expensive jewel ever sold at an auction.

Sotheby's estimate on the jewel: a whopping 12-16 million dollars.

"In my 32-year career, this stone ranks among the most beautiful diamonds I have ever seen," David Bennett, the auction house's chairman of jewelry for Europe and the Middle East, said last month when announcing the sale. He called it a "magnificent and unique stone."

The diamond has received the highest possible grading:

- D-color, or finest white,
- has flawless clarity,
- its cut, polish and symmetry have all been graded excellent.

The New York-based company is hoping the "Magnificent Jewels" sale at Geneva's historic Beau Rivage hotel will help it bounce back from the disheartening results of its Impressionist and Modern Art auction, which sent its stock tumbling.

The sale last week fetched $269.7 million, well short of estimates, and led some analysts to speculate whether the flight from risk currently gripping financial markets may be spilling over into the art world.

The company announced that it lost $14.6 million by purchasing paintings that failed to sell.

The white diamond already has been showcased in Hong Kong, Paris, New York, Rome, Los Angeles, London, Dubai and Bahrain. The auction Wednesday will also feature other diamonds, colored stones and gems from the world's leading jewelers.

Source: KEPR CBS 19 News



Today's auction at Sotheby might become another record-breaking event, the selling of the most expensive diamond ever to be auctioned. As stated above, this 84-carat diamond has garnered the highest possible grades in diamond ratings so it is expected that it would be sold for a very high amount. It also appears that the company really needs to sell this diamond at the right price so as to bring back the money they lost on previous auctions. Well, let us find out if this first-class diamond will reach everybody's expectations.




!!!!!!!!!!!!!!UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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And the 84-carat diamond goes to.....

GUESS clothing company founder GEORGES MARCIANO.

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Marciano's winning bid, made by telephone, came to $16,189,769 including the buyer's premium. It was just short of the all-time auction record for a stone or piece of jewelry, a record held by the same Sotheby's branch in Geneva for a 100.1-carat diamond that fetched $16.5 million in 1995.

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Source: AZCENTRAL

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So I guess it was not a record-breaking deal at the Sotheby auction yesterday, but still, the precious diamond was sold for a hefty amount which it deserves. Let us just wait for the next big auction and for the future record-breakers.

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http://www.jewelrydays.com/

--My Life Is Beautiful

Size Doesn't Always Matter... Record-Breaking Blue Diamond

One of the rarest gems in the world, a flawless blue diamond, has sold for US$7.98 million (3.91 million pounds) at a Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong, making it the most expensive gemstone in the world, per carat, sold at auction. Today, it broke the twenty-year-old world record set by the “Hancock Red” diamond, which fetched $926,000 (£456,000) per carat in New York in April 1987.

Below are other facts regarding the blue diamond:

- The 6.04 carat blue diamond was bought by Alisa Mousaieff of "Moussaieff Jewellers" in London which has a reputation for acquiring extremely rare and costly gemstones.

- The diamond will be brought back to London but not for display to the public. The stone will be locked away in the vaults at Moussaieff Jewellers in Mayfair. Ms Moussaieff explained that it will be shown only to “legitimate hard-nosed business clients”.

- Blue diamonds have long captivated the rich and powerful-- shimmering with a certain dark mystique.

• The famous "Hope Diamond", a 45.52 carat grey-blue beauty, was passed down through the ages by King Louis XIV of France, Marie Antoinette and American heiress Evalyn Walsh McClean among others. It now rests in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C.
• The Sultan of Brunei is thought to have snapped up another massive blue diamond when it surfaced briefly on the market in the 1980s.

- Other coloured diamonds with pink and red hues can be mined in multiple locations across the globe including Brazil, India and Australia, but "blues" are mostly found at just one site on earth -- the Premier Mine in South Africa.

- The blue hue is a result of trace amounts of boron in the stone's crystal structure.

- “It’s the colour, the purity and "the life" of the stone. The life of the stone is the water, the shimmer inside the diamond. Its cut and the number of carats may appear on the certificate, but the life you have to see," Ms Moussaieff said. According to her, the rarity combined with the lustre of this particular stone made it irresistible, thus amounting to the very large, record-breaking price.


Source: Timesonline


Here's a video on the headlining blue diamond:

Blue Diamond Unveiled


As the saying goes, "size doesn't matter", it holds true even to gems like diamonds. What matters is the quality, that is what makes it valuable, and, yes, very, very pricey. Because of its immaculate cut and vivid blue color, this blue diamond beats the world record today at the price of almost $8 million dollars. Watch the video and see how the diamond would actually look, it is sparklingly gorgeous!



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--My Life Is Beautiful

Everlasting Gems

Zircon crystals from the Natural History Museum. Diamonds more than 4 billion years old, nearly as old as Earth, have been found in zircon crystals recently uncovered in Western Australia.

FACTS ON DIAMONDS - What we know about them as of now:

* The Earth is thought to have formed 4.5 billion years ago. There would have been a huge amount of heat, explosions and violent activity as the Earth's crust and mantle was created. Any rock or mineral from around this time would need to be very tough to exist unchanged today.

* Zircon - A mineral whose crystals are extremely tough and relatively resistant to melting, so it is likely to hold clues about how the Earth's crust was made.

* Diamonds in Zircon crystals - through further analysis of these crystals, small diamonds were found in them dated over four billion years ago. This is nearly a billion years older than the previous oldest diamonds on Earth and only 300 million years away from the time when the Earth formed.

* New Findings - The research also suggests that the Earth cooled much more quickly than previously thought with the continental crust and oceans forming as early as 4.4 billion years ago.

* Not the Oldest Ones Though - But these diamonds aren't the oldest known. Sara Russell, meteorite and cosmochemistry expert at the Natural History Museum, explains, 'Although the Jack Hills diamonds are the oldest ones known to have formed on Earth, in our collections at the Museum we have meteorites that host diamonds predating even the formation of the Earth.'

Source: Natural History Musuem

Diamonds really are forever. Their resilience to chemical and physical processes means that they have an amazing capacity to survive and tell us about very early events. What fascinating traits of these everlasting gems! Not only are they beautiful and glamorous adornments, pricey at that, but they also give us facts about the Earth's history, which is very useful for our knowledge and understanding on how our planet came to be.


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http://www.jewelrydays.com/
--My Life Is Beautiful

A Colossal "BLUE DIAMOND" ... Going Once.. Going Twice..

A whopping sculpture of a "Blue Diamond" which is actually made of polished steel and chromium will be auctioned at Christie's in New York on 13th of November. Made by American artist Jeff Koons, known for his elegant high-grade steel and baroque designed porcelain figures, this sculpture is part of a series he called Celebration which consists of paintings and sculptures depicting toys and childhood themes - which began in 1994.

The "Blue Diamond" stands nearly eight feet tall and more than seven feet wide. It is said to represent an egg, which is being fertilized by the four gold-colored prongs that hold it in place. In the above mentioned series Celebration, there are four other versions of sculptured diamonds in red, pink, and green that are already privately owned, while a yellow version is said to be in production at the moment.

"Blue Diamond" is rumored to raise around $12 million in the auction. If in fact the "diamond" reaches this estimate, this will be Koons highest paid piece of art. The said amount is more than twice his auction record set in 2001 when his “Michael Jackson and Bubbles” sold for $5.6 million. Some say there have since been several private sales of Koons sculptures which amount to as much as $20 million.

--Source: BBC News

As we can see and as we all know, diamonds are so valuable and are worth a million dollars, even if they are not real diamonds. Imagine how much it would cost if the "Blue Diamond" is a real diamond rather than made of steel and chromium. Zillions! Not only are they girls' bestfriend, as the cliche goes, but also rich men's buddies and collectors' prized art pieces. Not only do diamond miners or companies make money out of diamonds but also artists like Jeff Koons. And as for most of us wanting our own blue diamonds, or even just a hint of blue in your jewelry like sapphire accents to your diamond ring, browse through our site and choose from various styles. We can also get them blue diamonds if you like, not as big as the gigantic "Blue Diamond" though. :)

As for the updates on the auction for the "Blue Diamond", we will surely keep you posted.


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http://www.jewelrydays.com/
--My Life Is Beautiful

“For the Love of God” - a $100 Million Masterpiece of a Skull

"For The Love of God!"

A one-of-a-kind creation has been invading broadsheets, televisions, radios, webpages, and other media. Indeed, it is worth the talk-of-the town, not only for its uniqueness but most importantly, the kind of art and soul it has.

Another unique masterpiece has come to life with the playful and artistic mind of Mr. Hirst. The art-piece known as “For the Love of God”, is a life-size cast of a human skull in platinum, covered by 8,601 almost flawless pavé-set diamonds. To learn more about these kind of diamonds please visit Jewelry Guide.

The state-of-the-art masterpiece is a creation of Mr. Hirst which is rather described as outrageous in its demands (not least a $100m price tag), daring in conception and execution, flamboyantly showy, but as piercingly accurate in its attaching of our thoughts and feelings about wonders of birth and life, death, art and wealth.

Said masterpiece is housed on Jay Jopling's new London gallery, White Cube Mason's Yard. Jay Jopling gave the creation an extravagant unveiling and the “For the Love of God” was displayed like a prized relic in a luxurious casket, in this new temple to contemporary art.

Below is a preview of how “For the Love of God” was carefully and artistically made into being:

(1) Selecting of flawless diamonds.

(2) Shaping the form of the molded skull for furnishing.

(3) The skull, almost half ready, minus the denture part

(4) Pave Setting the diamonds on the subject

(5) Putting details on each of the parts.

(6) Almost done with the masterpiece.

(7) Setting the pear-shape, loose diamond as the centerpiece.

(8) Adding details on the centerpiece.

(9) Furnishing and perfecting details on the centerpiece

Combined with a unique plan, careful calculation, and artistic procedure, diamonds indeed makes a creation more elegant, extravagant, one-of-a-kind, precious and eternal.

Source:

"For the love of God ", Economist.com

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Jewelry Days

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My Life is Beautiful

Study Shows That Diamonds Are Nearly As Old As Earth

"DIAMONDS", the word itself describes beauty and splendor, brilliance, elegance, and permanence. The word diamond was taken from the Greek word "Adamas" which means invincible and indestructible. Diamonds are indeed the hardest metal on earth!

Diamonds’ history is as interesting as its name!

There had been a number of studies showing that diamonds had been produced dating back to billions of years ago and certain vital questions could not be answered. Not until recently when group of scientist from Intstitute of Mineralogy found the answers to all its vagueness unearthing the real history of diamonds.

Scientist found out that diamonds had formed shortly after the rapid cooling of the earth making it a little younger than the formation of the earth. Then surroundings had catered to the formation of these precious rocks.

DIAMONDS BEFORE AND NOW

For thousands of years diamonds has attracted kings, queens, pirates and all other human being towards its mesmerizing beauty and value. Diamond has been the source for prosperity, power, love, courage and magical powers.

In the past, diamonds were considered as tears drops of the almighty god with magical powers in it; Hence in olden days persons in possession of diamonds were considered powerful and dominant.

Even now diamonds have the same eminence as it had in past. Whatever may be the history of diamonds, it has always been one of the most sought and precious stone in the entire world.

Learn more about diamonds by clicking Jewelry Guide on the home page.

www.jewelrydays.com
--My Life Is Beautiful

$6.5 Million Treasure Chest

Supermodel Karolina Kurkova looks stunning in the bra every woman wants for Christmas. Photo Credit: Victoria Secrets / Splash News

Now diamonds can give you a lift in a whole new way - with the Victoria's Secret 800-carat, flawless diamond bra!

The super-costly lingerie was modeled by Czech actress Karolina Kurkova, who said, "It's very sexy and very comfortable, and it doesn't dig in. And if anyone ever does buy it, I really would like to meet them."

The bra is made of 2,000 diamonds and a 10-carat diamond center brooch.

The price? $6.5 million. Quite an investment to make an impression on what must be a rather limited audience - although it's bound to inspire a whole new breed of cat burglar...

Anyway, it's just further proof that diamonds are uniquely glamorous, romantic, and fun!

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My Life Is Beautiful